The best bars with games in San Francisco

a cash-only corner Irish bar, good beer on tap + a pool table

a beloved lesbian/queer bar + restaurant, pool, dancing, and shows

a horseshoe-shaped bar, a clean pool table + free snacks

antique-punk decor, no TVs, but a pool table

open till 2am, tater tots

former 1994 firehouse music venue, 21 beers on tap

speakeasy + escape room hybrid, Middle Earth-inspired

true pool hall, premium experience, high-end decor

pinball machines on loan from Pacific Pinball Museum, Polynesian-themed tater tots

two-tiered backyard, corn hole and shuffleboard

indoor 14-hole mini golf course, full bar inside

the corner of Shotwell and 20th has been a bar since 1891 (originally Schlichtmann & Bredhofy Grocery Saloon), current building dates from 1906 — bullet holes from long-forgotten scuffles are still in the walls

occupies the iconic Elbo Room space — 30-year history preserved (closed Dec 2018 as Elbo Room, reopened as Valencia Room), kept the original church-pew booth seating and pinball machines

Mission corner dive at 17th & Guerrero with the iconic neon martini sign, huge red 'COCKTAILS' sign — landmark in every Mission photo

vintage-accented modern lounge, a pool table and books on the walls

a low-key sports bar near Oracle Park, cheap pool ($2 a game)

a dive bar's dive bar, pool table

original bear bar (since 1989), huge back patio

two-story SoMa hub, pool and foosball, darts, small arcade

opened 1942 — North Beach's old-Italian-guys bar par excellence, Beat-era regulars (Ferlinghetti, Saroyan) drank here when it was already old

large selection of flavored whiskeys, pinball machines and darts

bar, pool hall, and rotating art gallery in one, free pool always

a friendly Geary Street neighborhood bar, a pool table and the game on TV

a chill, dimly-lit TL hangout, beer, wine, and cocktails with top-shelf pours

named after wrestler Hank and boxer Ralph (1947), original phone booth

Art Deco building, Emperor Norton SF history theme

a longtime, community-oriented gay bar, pool, pinball, and video games

a friendly Castro gay bar, a back patio and pool table

rustic-modern Castro lounge, a pool table in back

heated back patio, pool tables

WWII-inspired space, long beer list

vintage Pac-Man, Donkey Kong, Space Invaders, Tetris, Killer Queen 10-player game

a warm neighborhood dive (cash only), a well-stocked bar + a jukebox

a spacious no-frills dive by the Regency Ballroom, pinball, pool, and a jukebox

a dark Polk-area sports dive, shots of Fernet, naturally

exposed brick and a fireplace, a driftwood bar with Tarantino flair

vintage arcade games, cheap highballs and 90s music

bi-level with a pool table, a piano upstairs

a big neighborhood saloon, walls of TVs, pool table and old-school arcade games

Polk Street gay bar from the pre-Castro era, gay-themed art on the walls

multi-floored sports bar, Skee-Ball, pinball, shuffleboard, pool

an old-school Irish pub near Ocean Beach, opens early for darts and a daytime pint

an old-school, windowless dive, opens early; no hangover-inducing sunlight

a friendly Noriega neighborhood bar, two coin-op games

a family-vibe Richmond pool bar, reputedly the best pool table in the city

a family-owned Richmond neighborhood bar, comfy booths + a pool table and jukebox

a Geary Street dive with two pool tables, friendly, memorable bartenders

a dark, cash-only Richmond pub, pool tables and a jukebox

a gritty Inner Richmond Irish pub, an extensive whiskey selection

a British-pub-feeling Clement St brewpub, shuffleboard and games

15 drafts including German beers, 8-ball pool

darts and pool tables, shepherd's pie on the menu

Clement Street neighborhood dive that locals are quietly protective of, low-key, no-pretense

a melting-pot Haight bar (gay, straight, everyone), cheap ~$5 pints

60+ pinball machines, working silk screen print shop attached

open since 1926 (current location since 1978) — every hour is happy hour, CD jukebox (not internet) — no filler, no easy listening, no Madonna

pool, pinball, and a jukebox, red banquettes and a chill vibe

warehouse brewery, shuffleboard and pinball

SF's last remaining lesbian bar (founded 1962), named after the 1962 film Walk on the Wild Side starring Barbara Stanwyck

opened 2011 in a space that's been a bar since at least The Cherokee era — preceded by Alfonso's (1987-90) and Skip's Tavern (1990-2011), big horseshoe-shaped bar in the middle that points everyone at each other

underground basement bar — descend a staircase under a neon Persona sign, inspired by SF's erotic cinema culture of the 1960s–70s: dark textures, metallic accents, neon

historic Harding Theater (1926), 50+ arcade games

Monday trivia, service industry crowd

sports-bar décor, pool table in back

named after Johnny Cash's 'I'm A Drifter' and Taoism's concept of the sage, opened 2021 by three Hockey Haven veterans

punk-rock dive, two pinball machines, $1 games

a pirate-themed Polk Street bar, a pool table + flat-screens

open-air beer garden near the wharf, local brews plus cider & wine

formerly the New Amsterdam — setting of the Counting Crows song 'Mr. Jones', $3 drafts and wells 4–8pm daily

a family-owned dive since 1939, pool, a jukebox, and pop-a-shot

multiple pool tables, fernet specialty

Cow Hollow / Marina edge — opened 1956, cash only

1900 Union Street's corner sports dive since 1900 — yes, since 1900, the bar's been continuous on this corner for 125+ years

two bars in one: Rick's (laid-back, Monopoly Deal/Cards Against Humanity/skee ball/darts/Connect Four) and Roxy's (disco balls/checkerboard dance floor/neon), 70s-inspired without being campy

a tiny, cute Outer Richmond dive, a sweet bartender who'll hand you a puzzle

established 1949 — 12 blocks from the Pacific Ocean, hockey-themed dive — pennants and memorabilia covering the walls ('a hockey fanatic's dream basement')

a revamped historic Dogpatch bar, pool tables and a jukebox

on Pier 28, Bay views

a Sunnyside/Ingleside neighborhood bar, a pool table and a friendly crowd

a big sunny back patio, ping-pong, pool, and video games

massive barcade, Super Smash Bros tournaments Mondays on giant projector

since 1933 (Playland at the Beach roots), 300+ coin-operated machines

a roomy, well-kept pool hall, quality felt and sticks

a textbook West Portal Irish pub, Irish beers on tap + the game on TV

SF's version of Cheers, 22 beers on tap

pool tables, cheap drinks

est. 1926 — neighborhood institution, regulars call it 'GPS'